We are writing to urge you to participate in the day of protest called by the Not In Our Name (NION) project for Sunday, October 6th. In our name, the Bush administration has taken for itself and its allies the right to rain down military force anywhere and anytime. Now, the government prepares openly to wage all-out war on Iraq â€“ a country which has no established connection to the horror of September 11th. In our name, the government has rounded up over 1000 immigrants, detaining them in secret and indefinitely. In our name, the government has brought down a pall of repression over society. The so-called USA Patriot Act, along with a host of similar measures on the state level, gives the police sweeping power of search and seizure, supervised, if at all, by secret proceedings before secret courts. The presidentâ€™s spokesperson has warned people to “watch what they say.” We believe that people of conscience must speak out, and act, in opposition to the injustice that is being done in our own name!

October 6th gives us a great opportunity to do that. As you can see from reading the NION Pledge of Resistance, NION brings people together to resist all the unjust acts being perpetrated as part of the War on Terrorism. It highlights the responsibility of people in this country to oppose the illegal and immoral acts of this government. Resistance to the war moves of the government and the repressive laws and policies being enacted must be taken to a higher level now, before another country is invaded and before more groups of people become targets of the repression.

If you are in New York or can get there, join thousands of others from different backgrounds in taking the Pledge of Resistance in Central Park on October 6th. If you canâ€™t get to New York, contact the Not In Our Name project to see if there is protest activity scheduled for your areas. If not, plan something and involve your friends, co-workers, congregation and/or fellow students in it.